Small Town murders
by cklksgrissom
Summary: When women of a small town are being murdered by the day, the BAU is called in and they have to work fast to catch a killer of the small town before he kills every woman in the small town with the help of a border collie named Lucy... Please read and let me know what you think. Any reviews welcome!
1. 1 Getting to Jakub

**Please note that any names (apart from CM characters) are made up. Also made up the name of the town in which the murders are happening. I have no idea if Jakub is a real town or if it is, if it is even anywhere near Montana as I live in the UK and have never been to America. References to the Season 5 episode 'Exit Wounds' and the town they go to in Alaska. **

Everyone had just arrived at the BAU and were just getting their first coffee when Hotch called them all into the conference room. Everyone but Garcia sat down at the table with their morning coffees to hear their new case.

"Three days ago Melanie Jones, 30 was found stabbed and beaten to death by a local dog walker in the only park in Jakub, Montana. Two days ago Lisa Tam,29 was found the same way by some local kids when they went to play on the playground of the same park. And yesterday Tina Bag, 31 was found stabbed and beaten by a man in the street when he was walking to work. The poor woman's pooch, a border collie named Lady, had run up to the man with blood all over her. Luckily the dog wasn't bleeding but the unsub had tied the poor thing up whilst he had murdered his owner. The pooch had chewed through its leash and run off to find her after the attack was over. All 3 women were single but had boyfriends. All 3 were of roughly the same age."

Hotch then spoke up. "The local sheriff has called us in as there has never been a murder in his small town and now he has 3 women of approximately the same age all found murdered in the same way in the space of only 3 days and he doesn't know how it will stop."

"Jakub is a small town of only about 500 people so the sheriff is worried as he knows everyone and doesn't know who it could be in his small isolated town."

The team then started off throwing around a few ideas of what the motive could be, who the unsub could be, etc. At one point the 2 dog lovers, as well as Reid the brain, spoke up about how the dog must have known the unsub.

MORGAN: "You know dogs like Lady often don't let just anyone go near them."

ROSSI: 'The more nervous the breed of dog, the more stranger cautious they can be. Labs like my Mudge love most humans but a collie like Lady will have had it in her breeding to naturally be cautious and wary of anyone she didn't know, even if her owner knew them.'

REID: "Border Collies were bred to work and herd sheep in the fields of England all day. They were originally bred so that the only human they saw and interacted with was the farmer and maybe the farmer's

family. They never really saw any other humans and therefore had it in their blood to always be really wary and nervous of anyone outside their immediate owners. Nowadays, they can be popular pets but they still have the stranger danger in their breeding. Also collies are known to be the most intelligent breed of dog and they have super sensitive hearing. Even if she couldn't see the attack, Lady probably heard the whole thing. Being so intelligent, she probably remembers everything and will definitely remember the unsub if she saw him again."

GARCIA: "I'm just glad that all he did to Lady was tie her up and did not hurt her. Please say she'll be okay."

HOTCH: "The sheriff told me the woman's mother had taken the dog in and was now caring for her."

GARCIA: "As long as nothing happens to the poor pooch and we catch this despicable person then I'll be happy!"

Everyone smiled, knowing how much their tech goddess loved animals. Even though all cases that involved children were hard, Garcia was always the one who got most upset when it came to a case that in some way involved an animal.

Eventually Hotch announced that " we need to be there as soon as possible. Garcia I need you with us so you can work your computer magic faster like you did when you came with us to Franklin. If he keeps to his schedule, we may already be too late to save his next victim but we need to stop him before he kills all the women in town. Wheels up in 30."

Everyone gathered their files and tablets and left to get ready for and get to the jet.

**On the jet…**

Halfway through the 4 hour flight, the team was going over their case and bouncing off ideas. At the end Hotch gave everyone their assignments once they arrived.

"When the jet lands in Montana, we still have about an hour's drive to Jakub. When we get there, Reid and Rossi I want you to go to see the bodies and learn everything from the local doctor. Morgan and Blake I want you to go to the latest crime scene and then go and visit the latest victim's mother and the victim's dog. J.J, Garcia and I will go and meet up Sheriff Tom and start setting up and going over victimology. Garcia I need you to start setting up and running checks on everyone as soon as we meet up with the sheriff. This is a small town so it may be like Franklin."

Garcia nodded "Yes sir."

Once the jet landed 2 hours later, they all grabbed their go-bags and hurried into the 2 government issued black S.U.V's. Hotch drove the lead car and Morgan drove the other car behind him. They all knew that they had to get to Jakub as soon as possible to save the women but they also all knew that they might be too late to save the unsub's next target…..


	2. 2 Meeting the Sheriff

When they arrived in Jakub, Dave and Reid were dropped off at the doctor's office where the bodies were being kept on ice until the funerals could be arranged. Morgan and Blake then drove onwards to the last crime scene which, being a small town, wasn't too far from the doctor's office. Hotch, J.J and Garcia drove to the sheriff's office in the centre of town. There they were greeted by Sheriff Tom who was very happy to see them. He filled them in on all the 3 cases and all the updates that had happened whilst the team had been travelling. Garcia was eager to get set up and get busy doing what she did best - helping her family team catch the lowlife's.

"Where can I set up my stuff?"

"That's where we have a small problem. Being such a small town we don't even have a motel or inn for your team to stay in. The only police here are me and my 2 deputies. I've had to arrange with my wife and my 2 deputies for your team to stay at our houses, which I hope will be okay. Our station, like most small town's stations, double's as the post office. I hope its okay with your team Agent Hotchner but you'll have to set up and work in my garage. I've put together what stuff I can that you asked for. I know it's probably nothing like what you are used to but it's the best me and my deputies can offer. My wife has offered to make all of you dinner for every night you're here in our town and I've made sure she's stocked up on coffee."

"That's fine. We go to a lot of small towns so we're used to adjusting and we don't need much. Please thank your wife and deputies for their hospitality when we've gone."

"I hope you have good internet access sheriff as I need to use it a lot."

"Don't worry Maam, my house is one of the few in town with that fibre thing, all paid for from the department as I apparently need it for work….."

"You mean fibre optic? Wow!"

"Yeah, that's it. I'm not too good with computer's and all that. I prefer paper files and old school detective work."

"You sound just like our boy genius. He's going to love you when he meets you later!"

"Boy what?"

"She's referring to our collegue Dr Spencer Reid. He's got a I.Q of 187 and knows almost anything about anything."

"Well, if you'll follow me in your car, I'll take you to my house and you can start getting set up so you can help me catch this SOB who's killing innocent women in my town."

The 3 of them got into the SUV and followed Sheriff Tom to his house. After meeting his wife, Kim, the sheriff and the 3 agents quickly got everything set up in his, surprisingly, empty garage and got down to work to find the unsub as soon as possible…..


	3. 3 A long day and a good night's sleep

"How far have you got on the background checks of the towns people?" Hotch asked as he and J.J stood by the big white board hashing out ideas. "Almost halfway through, sir. Sheriff Tom, your internet connection is top notch!" "Thank you maam."

The other 4 returned from the doctors and the crime scene. "What did you learn about the victims?"

"They were all strangled with the same type of thin wire ligature and all 3 were not only stabbed over and over but they were all stabbed exactly 21 times, though none of the stabbing patterns match. None of them were sexually assaulted. The doctor said the cause of death on all 3 was the same – strangulation. He seemed to have stabbed them 21 times after they had stopped breathing."

"That's definitely multiple overkill!"

"All 3 women were in good shape and could of run away and / or shouted for help which means that they all either knew or trusted the unsub. "

"What did Tina's mother tell you?"

"Tina was a sociable girl whom everyone liked and everyone in the town knew. She walked Lucy twice a day in the park but was well liked for how much training she'd put into her dog. Everyone who saw her and Lady always liked to comment on how well behaved and how well trained Lady was. They were a common but much loved sight in the town. Even kids loved her as she let them play ball with Lucy in the park and the dog was always great with any kid she met. She gave me a list of names of people she knew were good friends of her daughter but said that everyone in the town knew both her and Lucy and she couldn't think of a single person who would want to do this to such a lovely person."

"I know I said that border collies were bred so that they are nervous of strangers but its not uncommon for even border collies to see children as non-threatening and therefore someone they can trust – especially if they have the experiences of the children playing with them. Rossi you know that a way to a Labrador's heart is through its stomach but Border Collies are so active they not only love to play with toys but are well known to adore tennis balls so the way to a collie's heart is with a ball or toy….."

"Erm, Reid your rambling a little…"

"Sorry, like Garcia, I too love dogs."

"Speaking of dogs, Lucy was clearly timid and frightened after her experiences but was at least comfortable and clearly happy with the victim's mother, whom has said she will do her best to take as good a care of Lucy as Tina did and that, with her, Lucy will have a home for life."

"That will certainly make my baby girl happy!"

"Where is Garcia anyway?'

"She went to check something with the internet line."

Just then Sheriff Tom came into the garage carrying a tray full of mugs of coffee.

"Is someone having a baby girl?" This made everyone laugh. "No, sorry sheriff. Baby girl is my nickname for our tech goddess." Just then the topic of their conversation walked into the garage. "Did I hear a certain someone calling for their baby girl?"

"Sorry sweetness. I was just telling the sheriff about my nickname for you after he overheard us saying how happy you'd be to hear that Lucy is not only at least happy with the victim's mother but that the mom said how she'd have a home with her for life and that she'd try and take as good a care of Lucy as her daughter had done."

"Awww. For giving me such nice news you are forgiven Derek Morgan!"

"Erm how about we get back to the case at hand. We may not have very long to find this unsub before tonight."

"Sorry boss man!" "Yeah, sorry sir"

"The mother was telling me how her daughter always loved telling her how smart Lucy was and how she could always remember anything she'd been taught after just one try. Tina loved teaching Lucy new tricks and games and she was always spending money on new tennis balls. In fact the local shop always made sure they kept a good supply of them just for Lucy. The mother said that Lucy was nervous of strange men and women and she was sure whoever had killed her daughter must have been someone Lucy had seen and known before as she wouldn't let just any adult approach or handle her, even though she loved kids and let them around her. She also told her mom how Lucy would always remember anyone who ever said or did anything nasty to her or Tina. She hopes we might, with the mom's help, be able to use Lucy as a witness to identify her daughter's killer. She knows that Lucy wouldn't have forgotten."

"She may be right about the dog. I'll keep the idea in mind and it may come in handy if the unsub claims innocence."

"I'll let the mom know that we might take her up on the offer if it comes to it. She'll certainly be pleased if Lucy does help catch the killer as it would please her daughter to know that her beloved and smart dog helped catch the person who killed her as she would consider it Lucy's way of getting revenge for tearing her world apart."

"Did any of the victims have a boyfriend?"

"Only the second one, Lisa Tam. Melanie had split up with her boyfriend before she moved back her after finishing college and Tina's life revolved around Lucy and her job and she didn't really have time for a boyfriend, especially considering how any boyfriend would have to get not only Tina's approval but Lucy's approval as well. Excuse me I'm just gonna go call the victim's mom to tell her about the possibility of using Lucy as a witness later on."

Derek slipped outside to phone the victims mother.

For the rest of the afternoon the team desperately tried to narrow down the suspect pool. Just before it got dark Derek got a call on his cell phone from the mother. He and Blake headed back over to the house as she had some news that she thought might be relevant to them. Rossi had wanted to go with Morgan but Hotch had somehow known that Lucy might be better having people she'd seen before go back into her new home, especially when it came to men. Blake had been there with Morgan the first time and so Lucy would have been more trusting of her than of Dave.

When Morgan and Blake returned they reported what the mother had said.

"Apparently when she took Lucy for her late afternoon walk today to the park to play ball, Lucy had not only refused to go near the crime scene area, which was understandable but she had also shown some strange behaviour. Whilst in the park playing, two men had been walking home through the park and Lucy had started to snarl and bark at only one of the men. The mom hadn't really thought much of it and had thought that, since Tina's death, Lucy was afraid of all strange men. But then, walking home, every time a man with dark hair and a goatee beard walked near she would go crazy at them. They passed other men with different hair colours, looks, etc but Lucy only snarled and barked at the men with dark hair and goatee beards. Also on their walk, every time someone nearby even raised their voice, Lucy would get scared. Apparently Tina had desensitised Lucy early on so that she wasn't afraid of loud noises like some collies can be and so even fireworks and thunderstorms hadn't, in recent years, even fazed her."

"Wow, it sounds like she could really come in handy in catching this guy. Thanks to Lucy, we know the unsub is male, has dark hair, a goatee beard and was shouting. Garcia, I need you to narrow down the list of suspects to males who have dark hair and any kind of beard."

"Right away, sir. Didn't I always tell you animals were really smart?"

Garcia started to type away at her laptop and quickly had a list of names of about 80 men. Although it was still quite a long list, it had given them all somewhere to start and raised all their hopes up again. The sheriff appeared and said his wife had dinner ready if they wanted it. "If this unsub doesn't kill anyone tonight, we can start going through the list tomorrow, but we'll start back after dinner as I'm sure everyone is hungry."

They all went into the house and sat around the table. They discovered that Kim was an excellent cook and, after a delicious and filling meal of lasagne, for which Kim cooked two, one meat and one vegetable especially for Garcia, whom she come to be good friends with already, the team insisted on helping Kim clear the dishes before going back downstairs to start working on the list of 80 names.

They started to try and narrow down their suspect pool. "Garcia I need you to eliminate any man who has only very recently moved into the town. We know that he knew the victims well so he must have lived here either a long time or his whole life."

"Eliminate men who have night jobs. Our guy obviously either has no job or a day job so he's free to roam the streets at night."

Garcia started to type away on her computer and managed to knock 20 names off the list. "It's still a long list sir as it still leaves 60 possible suspects."

"That's okay. First thing tomorrow morning we can work in pairs and split the list between ourselves so we each work off a list of 20 names. I'm sure given our combined minds we can eliminate people as we go down the lists. Morgan and Blake you take the first 20, Rossi and I will take the next 20 and Reid and J.J you two take the last 20. Once we try and narrow it down we can be closer to finding this guy before its too late…"

"Hopefully he'll stay at home tonight so any woman will be safer."

"I've spread the word to all the town's single women to stay at home if at all possible tonght and if they must go out to take their car and take either a neighbour or someone with them but to stay away from the park."

"That's good. That'll help stop him killing anyone tonight…."

"Sheriff can you call your deputies as we have a basic profile we'd like to give them and you before tonight is over."

Sheriff Tom called up his 2 deputies who arrived a few minutes later. They and the sheriff sat on chairs with notepads taking notes whilst the team stood delivering their profile.

"We believe the unsub to be of a man in between the ages of 25 and 40. He has dark hair and some kind of beard. He appears non threatening and of average build. All 3 victims knew him in some way or another so we need to warn all local women to be on their guard with any male they may meet outside their homes, even if they know them. We believe the man has either a day job or is unemployed to leave him free to roam the streets at night."

"Excuse me but how do you know the guy has dark hair and a beard of some kind? I mean we don't even know what he looks like and we know everyone in the town…"

"The last victim's dog has suddenly started acting aggressively at only men with dark hair and some type of beard. Given that she was placid and has never shown any aggression at anyone before her owner was killed I'd say this was a sign that this man looked like this."

"Yeah that Lucy is one smart dog…."

"Given that all the victims must of somehow have known this guy and not felt the least bit threatened by him tells us that the man has either lived in this town for a long time or maybe even his whole life. He is not someone who has only recently moved to the area. We have managed to narrow down the list of suspects to a list of 60 names. As long as he stays dormant tonight, we'll start to work through the list first thing tomorrow and do our best to find him before the night is out. Hopefully we can save any more potential victims."

"Deputies I want you both out patrolling around the clock tonight just in case something happens. If you work through the night then as soon as these fine agents get back to work in the morning, I'll let you take the morning off so that you can both catch a few hours sleep. Is that okay with you guys?" Both the deputies eagerly agreed.

"Okay that's as much of a profile as we have right now. Deputies please be on your guard and don't hesitate to call in if anything at all happens. We are all willing to be back working at the drop of a hat until we find this guy. But please note this guy, although he may in every day life appear non threatening and harmless, is likely to be violent and dangerous so if you do try to apprehend him tonight please be very careful. Otherwise stay safe and be on your highest alert."

"Don't worry Agent Hotchner, we want to get this guy as much as you do."

By 8pm they were all extremely tired, having travelled a long way and worked so hard at getting as close as they had. Hotch decided to call it a night.

"Let's get some sleep and start fresh in the morning. Hopefully nothing happens tonight. Unfortunately due to this being a small town they don't have anything like a motel so the sheriff and his 2 deputies have kindly offered to put us all up for every night we are here. That means that there will be 3 people in one house and 2 people each in the other houses. So who wants to go where?"

"Agent Hotchner, I hope its okay with you but my wife really would like Miss Garcia to stay here as they've really hit it off."

"Sure. How about Reid and Blake go to one house and Morgan and J.J to the other? As this is our central point, Rossi and I will stay here. Is that okay with everyone?" "Sure, no problem!" called everyone else. So, whilst Morgan and J.J got into deputy Max's car, Reid and Blake got into deputy Dan's car. Hotch had warned deputy Dan to warn his wife about how they might learn more than they needed to know about anything whilst Reid stayed with them. Dan had laughed them off but had promised to share the joke with his wife. They all agreed to be back at the garage at 7am the next morning.

Rossi, Hotch and Garcia grabbed their go bags from the SUV and followed the sheriff through his house. They already knew where the bathroom was, all 3 having had to use it at some point in the day. Tom showed Garcia to the first spare room and then had Rossi and Hotch follow him to the other spare room where there were 2 single beds.

"I'm sorry it isn't much but I hope it'll do you okay."

"As long as it's a bed neither Dave or I mind one bit. What time do you and your wife wake up?'

"We can be up for anytime. What time do you agents want to start work? My wife wants to cook you breakfast before you start so you'll have something to work on."

"We were planning on starting at 7 so we were thinking of getting up around 6. Is that too early?"

"No, that's fine. Feel free to use the shower both tonight and in the morning. There are plenty of towels you can use in the cupboard in the bathroom. I'll bid you goodnight and see you in the morning."

The sheriff left the room and closed the door, leaving the 2 agents alone. They heard someone in the shower and so, whilst they waited, they both changed into their night clothes. Then first Hotch went and used the bathroom and brushed his teeth and then Dave did the same. Whilst Dave had been in the bathroom, Hotch called Jessica's house to speak to Jack. They had had a lengthy conversation and Jack was telling his dad all about the science experiment they had done in school. Dave had walked back into the room just as Hotch and Jack were saying goodnight and Hotch had let Jack speak to Dave to say goodnight to his uncle Dave. They climbed into their beds exhausted. Hotch set his alarm for 6 before both men fell asleep.

**The next day…..**

At 6am Hotch's alarm went off, waking up both men. Rossi moaned from under his covers and lay in bed, not wanting to get up. Hotch, being an early riser, climbed out of bed, grabbing some clean clothes and his wash bag and slipped out of the room and went into the bathroom. After using the bathroom and having a quick shower and a shave, and brushing his teeth, Hotch dressed and, only 10 minutes later, left the bathroom. He was met in the hall by Kim who was just coming out of her's and Tom's room. They said good mornings to each other before Kim went into the bathroom. Hotch returned to the bedroom. On his way back, he stopped by Garcia's room and knocked on the door to see if she was awake. He was surprised when she opened the door fully dressed and obviously in the middle of applying her make up.

"Good morning. I was just making sure you were awake but, like you always do, you surprised me. I didn't expect to see you already up. I thought I was the only one that got up early. Even Rossi is still refusing to get out of bed!"

"I'm eager to get to work and plus I showered last night so I didn't have to wait for the shower this morning."

"Well, I know I'll see you in a few minutes but I just have to go check on Rossi and maybe pull him out of bed…."

Hotch headed towards his room again. He heard the toilet flush and the bathroom door open and, looking behind him, saw Kim walk out.

He went back to his room and was glad to see Dave sitting on his bed gathering his wash bag and some clothes before a shower.

"Morning! I think the bathroom's free if you want it."

"Thanks. I'll be back in a minute." Dave went into the bathroom to shower, returning 10 minutes later freshly showered and fully dressed and having brushed his teeth. They could both smell the delicious aroma of eggs and bacon and coffee and, after making their beds, went out of the room. On their way to the kitchen they stopped at Garcia's room. As usual she was her bouncy and hyper self and came bounding out of her room. Both men winced a little as neither felt they had her energy yet. They both needed their coffee before they could get anywhere near her energy level!

All 3 went downstairs to the kitchen where they were surprised to see the others already sitting at the table. Kim, seeing the still sleepy 2 male agents come down the stairs, handed both men mugs of strong coffee, knowing that, like her husband, they needed their coffee in the mornings to get going.

"Morning boss!"

"Morning. I didn't expect you lot to be her before 7."

"You know us, none of us can sleep well when we're away on a case. And besides, Kim here insisted last night on cooking everyone a good breakfast before we started work. And if your like Derek here, you need food before you work!"

Hotch, Rossi and Garcia sat down at the table and Kim served them plates full of scrambled egg, bacon, and toast. Knowing Garcia was a vegetarian, she specially made Garcia a plate with extra eggs and toast but no bacon.

They all sat and hungrily ate the delicious breakfast. Whilst they were eating, Sheriff Tom appeared freshly showered, shaved and dressed for work. Kim handed him a mug of coffee and then made up a plate of eggs, bacon and toast for her husband.

Once they were full, they all again insisted on helping clean up so Kim let them and instead spent the time making up a fresh batch of coffee. Once the dishes had been put away, the team, all with a mug of fresh coffee in their hands, made their way to the garage to start work. They were all glad that nothing had happened during the night but knew that this meant that the unsub would most likely kill someone tonight so they needed to find him fast…..


	4. 4 Lucy's help

They gathered back in the garage and went over all they knew before being given their assignments for the day.

"Morgan and Blake you take the first 20 names, Rossi and I will take the next 20 and J.J and Reid you two take the last 20 names. If we split the list up we can do our best to eliminate as many people as possible from each list then we can hopefully regroup and narrow that list down even further to say…..one….I don't have to remind you all to keep using and referring to the profile we've come up with in your searches."

"Erm…boss man, we only have 2 cars…."

"That's okay. Me and Rossi will stay here for now and if we need to go anywhere Sheriff Tom will take us. Is that okay with you sheriff?"

"That's fine. Just let me know what you need me to do or where you need to go. I've given my 2 deputies the morning off so they can get a few hours sleep but they've promised to be back here after lunch to help in any way they can."

"You four go off and start talking to everyone you can about the names on the list. If we get any news on this end I'll call you. We'll meet back here in say 3 hours to see where we're all at. Blake and Morgan you focus most on anyone who might have known Tina, J.J and Reid you focus more on anyone who might have known the second victim, Lisa. Me and Rossi will focus most on anyone who might have known our first victim Melanie."

Reid and J.J got into one of the SUV's. and Morgan and Blake got into the other SUV and they left to try and find the unsub on the list of names.

Rossi and Hotch spent some time going through what information they could get with Garcia's help and by going through both the profile they had and racking their own brains. They managed to eliminate 5 men from their list of 20.

After over an hour they decided they needed to start hitting the streets to get through more of the list. After both nipping to use the bathroom, they got into Sheriff Tom's car and he started to drive them around to question as many people as they could before the team was due to meet up again. Gradually, after talking to a lot of people and looking at everything they could, they had cut their original list of 20 in half.

By the time they arrived back at the sheriff's house at 11am, the other 4 were waiting for them. They regrouped in the garage to find out what everyone had managed to find out about each person on the list.

"We've managed to knock 8 people off our list. We went back to talk to the mother again and she told us that she suspected that whoever had done this most likely either loved dogs or had one themselves as her daughter had trusted those people more than most, especially if Lucy got on with them. We also talked to a lot of her girl friends who all said the same thing, that Tina most trusted and got on with either dog lovers or dog owners and that she trusted and got on with people most if they got on with her dog."

"We got our list down to 15. We talked to Lisa's work place and a lot of her friends. They said she was shy and nervous of strangers. For her to get on and trust someone, she had to know them really well. Apart from her work and family, Lisa didn't really have much of a social life and so most people outside of work she knew were from her high school years. In fact she had known our last vic Tina really well and considered her one of her few friends outside of work."

"Did anyone know how she had known Tina?"

"Apparently because they were so close in age they were in the same year at school together. They and a big group of friends regularly hung out together."

"Did Lisa know Melanie then?"

"Actually yeah. Someone recognised Melanie's picture and identified her as one of the group of girls in their group of high school friends."

"It's not unlikely, given that this is a small town that all 3 victims knew each other or were even friends. Did they have any idea who might have done this?"

"No. Unfortunately since leaving high school and outside of work, Lisa kept to herself."

"Sounds like Tina. Although everyone knew her and her dog, Tina was so busy with work and so focused on Lucy that she didn't really have much of a social life."

"We spoke to a lot of people who knew Melanie. Apparently she had lived here her whole life and, since graduating high school, she had worked in the restaurant but outside of work had kept to herself."

"So all three victims grew up here, knew each other and had been friends in high school but since graduating and starting work had not really had much of a social life and had kept to themselves."

"I think it's a good bet that the unsub went to the same high school as the victims and that's how they knew and trusted him. They had known him since they were kids….."

"Garcia I need you to cross reference all the remaining names on our lists with anyone who went to the same high school around the same time as the 3 victims."

"From a list of 37, I now have a list of 20."

"Eliminate anyone who didn't either love dogs or own a dog."

"18 left."

The sheriff was impressed at how good they were "Wow, from a list of 60 you've already narrowed it down to 18?"

"Each time we get a new parameter, we have something new to add to the profile and so can eliminate more people."

"I am so glad I had the guts to call you guys in!"

"18 is a more manageable number than before."

After a quick lunch, the 2 deputies appeared back at the sheriffs house.

"I know this may sound unusual but Sheriff can you and Morgan go and pick up Tina's mother and have her bring Lucy here?"

"Dave what are you thinking?"

"Lucy is the best witness we have at the moment and the minute she see's the unsub, I reckon it'll show."

"Hmm, that is one sure fire way of getting through the list quicker than questioning everyone. The suspect may lie but the dog won't…."

"Why do you want Agent Morgan to come with me to pick up the mother and Lucy?"

"Because I reckon, having already met him twice in the past 24 hours, Lucy might trust Morgan enough for the mom to convince her to come with her."

"Okay, I get where your coming from. Luckily for me Lucy knows me as well and being a dog lover I don't mind her being in my car…"

The sheriff and Morgan drove off to pick up Tina's mom and Lucy.

"Garcia, I need you to print off a list of each suspect's name and where they work, along with their work and home addresses."

"Done and done!" Garcia handed Hotch a piece of paper with a list of names and workplaces and both home and work addresses.

"Once they get back with the mom and the dog, Me, Blake and Morgan will take her and Lucy out to the different locations. Rossi I'm afraid she might react to you so you'll have to stay behind. Reid and Garcia will keep you company. J.J, the 2 deputies and the sheriff will follow us in the second SUV. I'm hoping that even seeing the unsub from the car might gain a reaction from her."

"We know she's reacted to every man that looks like him. What if she reacts to them all?'

"I'm hoping Tina's mom will be able to help us there. She'll know if Lucy's reactions are any different from just the reactions she had with every man she met yesterday. She knows Lucy well enough to know."

About half an hour later, the sheriff returned with Morgan, Tina's mom and a scared looking border collie on a lead. Everyone got out of the car and walked towards the garage. The collie seemed nervous as they approached the team. Rossi stood well back in case Lucy took a disliking to him, him having dark hair and a beard after all!

"Everyone this is Sheila, Tina's mom and this here is the lovely Lucy who's going to help us catch this monster."

To avoid spooking the dog, each team member momentarily ignored Sheila and bent down to be more at the dog's level. As each team member introduced themselves to Lucy, Sheila kept reassuring her and tried to make sure that Lucy knew she was safe and the people she was meeting were okay. Blake went first, having already met Lucy twice. Lucy noticeably was more relaxed when she saw Blake, offered Blake a paw and even wagged her tail a little. Once Blake had said hello to Lucy she stood up and shook Sheila's hand.

J.J, being the other woman and therefore less threatening went next. She crouched down to Lucy and used her mom's voice to introduce herself. Lucy seemed to respond to this and visibly relaxed. Once J.J had said hello to Sheila she backed away so Reid could take his turn. Like J.J and Blake, Reid used his softest soothing voice to try and tell Lucy that he wanted to be her friend and that he was no threat to her.

Hotch went last (Morgan already being beside Sheila). He knelt right down and, speaking to her in the voice he used only with Jack, he spoke as softly as he could. Everyone secretly smiled to themselves as they never normally heard the big man Hotch speak in such a baby soft voice. As he spoke to Lucy, he slowly put a hand towards her. Lucy was visibly more nervous of Hotch but, upon hearing his baby soft tone voice and being able to sniff his hand, she surprised the team by doing what she had done with Blake, whom she had met before. The team watched in amazement as Lucy slowly started wagging her tail and offered Hotch a paw! Obviously Hotch had won her over!

After getting to his feet and introducing himself to Sheila, Hotch backed away. Only then did Lucy see Rossi standing at the back. She started to visibly shake with fear and started to let out a low growling sound. Everyone knew that Rossi couldn't even start to make friends with Lucy until they had caught the unsub as they needed this kind of reaction from the collie in order to find the man who had killed her beloved owner. As each team member greeted Lucy and Sheila, both the sheriff and Sheila and even the 2 deputies were amazed at how much effort they were putting into making the dog feel comfortable around them.

"Sheila I don't know how much the sheriff and Agent Morgan have told you."

"All they had to tell me was that they wanted Lucy to help them spot the man. As soon as they told me that I happily agreed. It only took a little time to get here because Lucy wanted to play with Agent Morgan!"

"As soon as we're finished here Lucy girl, I'll gladly take you to the park and throw a ball as much as you want!" At this, the smart dog wagged her tail.

"Me, Agent Blake and Agent Morgan will drive you and Lucy around to different locations. Sheriff you and your deputies will be in the SUV behind with Agent Jareau so we can take the man into custody should we, or should I say Lucy, find him. If we can, we'll stay in the car and spot each suspect from the cars. I'm hoping that when she sees the unsub, Lucy will have such a reaction that we will know. Sheila, as you know her the best, I need you to sit with Lucy and tell us if any reactions she has is different from the ones she had yesterday on seeing every man with dark hair and a beard. You can also help to comfort and calm her as we drive along. If for any reason you feel that either of you need a break or need to stop, just let us know."

"Thank you Agent Hotchner."

Just then Kim appeared with what looked like a empty plastic bowl and a large bottle of water, along with a carrier bag.

"I thought you might like to borrow these. Its only some water and a bowl for Lucy in case she gets thirsty. And in the bag, there are a few tennis balls I've found recently and also a container of chopped up freshly cooked chicken just for Lucy." Morgan took the bag, bowl and bottle of water

"Thank you. It's so nice for you to think of Lucy at a time like this." Morgan held the bag near Lucy and everyone laughed when they saw the dog busily sniffing the bag and wagging her tail. She obviously knew what was in there!

Morgan and Hotch led the way to the cars. All the way to the car Lucy never took her nose or eyes off the bag. They would have to hide that bag whilst in the car unless they needed to go into it!

Whilst Hotch got into the driver's seat and Blake, taking the carrier bag to hide under her feet, got into the passenger seat, Morgan climbed into the back with Sheila and Lucy, helping Lucy into the back. Lucy at least seemed happy to be inside a car which Hotch was pleased about as he didn't want to face the hassle of her being sick in the car! With J.J, the deputies and the sheriff in the SUV behind they drove off. At each of the first 10 locations, they stopped the car and waited. Although Lucy reacted to each of the suspects she saw, it was the same reaction she'd had as the day before when she reacted to all men with dark hair and beards. Sheila and Morgan sat on either side of Lucy and kept reassuring and hugging her. Through his rear screen mirror Hotch even caught Lucy giving Morgan quite a few sloppy kisses as he drove along.

After the 10th stop, Morgan asked that they pull over so Lucy could be offered a drink. He put some of the water in a bowl and held it as Lucy lapped up some of the water. He even volunteered and was the one to jump out of the SUV to let the dog relieve herself on the grass verge before they hopped back in and drove onwards.

The 11th suspect got the same general reaction from Lucy.

When the team stopped at number 12 and Lucy saw the suspect, she went wild! She started barking her head off, snarling, growling and lunging at the door to get to him. It took both Sheila and Morgan to physically restrain her. Even though her reaction took everyone in the car by surprise, Hotch quickly got on his cell phone and called J.J behind them. Everyone saw the man see the SUV's and see Lucy reacting so violently towards him and start to try and run off. He made the mistake of having to run towards the vehicles to try and get away and the deputies, the sheriff and Blake all jumped out of the vehicles and surprised him. The unsub, a Adam Wick, was handcuffed and led to the second SUV where he was sat with the deputies on either side of him. The team started to drive back towards the sheriff's station.

"Hotch, would it be okay if you dropped me, Sheila and Lucy at the park. I'd like to give her her reward for helping catch this guy!"

"Sure. Call one of us when your finished and we'll pick you all up. I agree that Lucy deserves something for her help." "Hear that girl, we're going to the park to play ball!" Lucy started wagging her tail wildly and barked in response.

Hotch dropped Morgan, Sheila and Lucy, along with the carrier bag that now contained the bowl and water, off at the park whilst the rest of them drove to the sheriff's station. Over the next hour, whilst the team and sheriffs questioned Adam, Morgan and Sheila stood throwing tennis balls for an obviously now happy Lucy in the park. Even after the dog couldn't run anymore, they spent time just sitting relaxing and cuddling Lucy and fed her the chicken. With Sheila knowing the words Tina had used for each trick, Lucy happily showed off every trick she knew. Lucy was clearly enjoying every minute of being in the park! Morgan and Sheila chatted and he convinced her to call him Derek instead of Agent Morgan.

Eventually Morgan reluctantly called Hotch to ask him for a lift back. He had been enjoying the time spent with Lucy (and Sheila) in the park and hadn't wanted it to end. But Lucy was obviously tired and eager to get back to her new home to rest.

A few minutes later one of the SUV's, driven by Hotch, pulled up by the park's entrance and Morgan, Sheila and Lucy climbed in. "Thanks for letting me spend this time with Lucy Sheila. She is so amazing that I hate the fact that I have to leave her soon, even though I know she'll be safe happy and well loved by you."

"If we swop email addresses I can send you updates and pictures of her if you'd like. That way you can see how she's doing."

"Sure. That would be fantastic. I can even send you pictures of my dog."

"I thought you must have a dog as you've gotten on so well with Lucy."

"He's a Labrador called Clooney. Every time we have to go away on a case I miss him. You know it's a shame that Lucy hasn't taken to Rossi as he's got his own Lab back home named Mudge and he loves dogs just as much as I do."

"Hopefully when we get back I can see if he can win Lucy over. We still have some chicken left and we didn't lose any of the tennis balls."

"Rossi man would certainly love it if Lucy did like him as he really does love dogs."

They all arrived back at the sheriffs house and got out of the SUV. The rest of the team were there, along with sheriff Tom. The 2 deputies were at the station booking Adam Wick in after he finally admitted to killing the 3 women. Rossi hesitantly approached them, remembering Lucy's reaction to him before. Lucy, on the other hand, being as smart as she was, seemed to have realised that she had found her man in Adam and surprised Dave when she wagged her tail at him!

"Wow, it looks like we don't need to worry about Rossi winning her over after all!"

"I reckon Lucy here is smart enough to have realised that, after all her searching of faces, she had finally found the man who had hurt her mom. Now that he's been found, she probably realises that there's no longer any reason to see a man like Agent Rossi as a threat!"

"And I'd say that goes to show how smart dogs really are! Would you mind if, after Rossi, I made friends with her as well?"

"You must be Miss Garcia. Agent Morgan was saying how much you loved all animals. I'd be honoured if everyone on your team, especially you, became Lucy's friends."

"It's a shame Jack and Henry aren't here as I heard she loves kids."

"Who are Jack and Henry?"

"Jack's my seven year old son and Henry is Agent Jareau's four year old boy. Both of them adore dogs and love to play with both Mudge and Clooney. They'd certaintly love Lucy and I'm sure Lucy would love them, especially with all the endless energy they seem to have!"

"I'm sorry Lucy won't meet them this time. Maybe next time you come to our town."

Rossi had by now moved up to Lucy and was kneeling down. Now the hunt for the killer was over, the dog was obviously much happier with the team. Sheila handed Dave a tennis ball and the agent happily spent a couple of minutes tossing the ball to Lucy, who would drop it for him to toss it to her again. The whole time she never stopped wagging her tail.

"I can see how much work your daughter must have put in to a dog like Lucy to make her so happy and such a wonderful dog."

"Thank you Derek. You've been so kind to not only me but especially kind to Lucy and I know my daughter would of liked you as a friend."

"Why don't we go and exchange those email addresses so we can keep up on how each other's dogs are doing?"

"Sure."

"If its okay with you, could Lucy stay here so we can keep up this little game?"

"I don't think she'd have it any other way Agent Rossi."

Sheila handed Dave Lucy's lead and followed Derek into the garage where they wrote down their email addresses.

"Agent Hotchner, as its already 4pm, I'm hoping you will agree to stay the night and go back in the morning. My wife and I want to throw everyone on your team a thank you barbeque and she's already been out to the store and stocked up on beer, soda, burgers, steaks, ribs and sausages and every side dish and salad you could think of and, unless we get help eating them, they would eventually go to waste!"

"Tell your wife in that case we'd be honoured to stay the night. We were hoping to stay the night anyway as I didn't fancy driving the hour back to the airport at this later hour."

"Did someone say ribs and steaks?" Morgan and Sheila were walking back towards Lucy, Rossi and Hotch.

"There goes Morgan thinking about his stomach again."

"Sheila, Kim insists that you and Lucy stay. She's even offered to cook Lucy a steak and some sausages of her own to say well done!"

"In that case I can't say no then can I? Lucy will love it as she can spend her time demanding everyone play ball with her and I think that she deserves something really special!"

"Morgan will enjoy it as he not only gets to gorge on meat but he gets to spend a little bit more time with Lucy!"

"In that case me and the wife will get things going and the food should be ready for around 6ish. That okay with everyone?"

"That's fine. If you need any help just give us a shout. We'd love to help in any way we can. Oh and tell your wife we insist on at least clearing up afterwards!"

"Okay but you are all he honoured guests so all I expect is for you to relax and enjoy it. My 2 deputies are coming over to help us out so there'll be 4 people instead of just the 2 of us."

The sheriff disappeared into his house.

"Dave, why don't you stay with Sheila and help keep Lucy occupied whilst the rest of us pack up and clear the garage before the barbeque?"


	5. 5 Finale, BBQ and saying goodbye

With everyone except Rossi packing up and clearing the sheriff's garage of their work, it didn't take too long for the sheriff's garage to be back to how it was before the team had arrived. Whilst they were packing up the 2 deputies arrived from the station, having escorted Adam Wick to jail.

"I forgot to ask but did he say why he killed the 3 women?"

"Apparently their group had teased and mocked him during high school and he wanted revenge."

"Why wait all these years to suddenly start killing them now though?"

"Apparently he was always being mocked and bullied by women at work and had just gotten a new female manager who continued to mock him. He'd just had enough."

The deputies excused themselves when the sheriff called them to help him and the 2 men went into the house. Dan emerged a few minutes later with a cold bottle of beer for each person and a cold can of coke for Sheila, who didn't drink.

"Tom said your free to sit outside and enjoy tonight. Me and Max won't be drinking so we can take the ones staying at our places back safely. Agent Morgan do you have that bowl you were using earlier? If you give it to me I'll go fill it up with cold water for Lucy."

Morgan exchanged the empty plastic bowl for a bottle of beer and the deputy went inside, returning moments later with the bowl full of cold water. He put the bowl just inside the garage door.

"Sheila, I'll leave a bowl of water here for Lucy if she's thirsty!"

"Thank you!"

Rossi and Sheila led Lucy inside where she stood taking a large drink from the bowl. The rest of the team were sitting outside on the front lawn. Once Lucy had had her fill of water, they joined the team sitting on the front lawn in the afternoon sun. Lucy surprised everyone by laying herself across Hotch's outstretched legs and falling asleep. She had obviously fallen in love with the team and everyone knew they would not only miss her when they left tomorrow but that she would miss them as well.

As they were sitting chatting, a woman with a black Labrador walked past the house. Lucy jumped up and wagged her tail wildly at the dog. She pulled against her lead restraint obviously wanting to say hello to her canine friend. Morgan stood up and led Lucy down to the dog who had stopped and was not only wagging their tail in response to seeing Lucy but was point blank refusing to budge until they had been allowed to see each other. As soon as Lucy reached the Labrador, they started sniffing and wagging their tails wildly, obviously very happy to see one another.

"Hi Lucy. It's good to see you so happy! You're the FBI agents who caught Tina's killer aren't you?"

"Yes maam. Did you know Tina then?"

"Yeah we were good friends and met up regularly in the park as Lucy and Coal here loved to play together. Thank you so much for catching her killer. And I'm so glad Lucy is looking so happy again. How's she doing Sheila?"

"She's doing great. She's missing Tina obviously but she's already made some new friends with these FBI agents."

"Lucy here helped us catch the killer this afternoon. She's so smart and was such a great witness to have to identify the man."

"Wow! Lucy is one smart dog and was lucky to have an owner like Tina. I was wondering but I'm on my way to the field at the end of the road and was wondering if I might borrow her for a little while Sheila. I'd bring her back but its just that Coal here hasn't seen her in quite a few days and I know they are both desperate for some off lead playing time."

"Sure, that's fine by me. I'm sure Lucy would love it!"

Morgan handed the woman the lead and the team watched her walk down the road with Lucy and Coal, both dogs obviously eager to get to the field so they could begin playing and chasing one another but both being obedient enough to keep walking to heel.

Not long after sheriff Tom appeared to tell them the food was almost ready. He was surprised to see Lucy gone.

"Sheila where's Lucy?"

"Tammy, Coal's owner was walking to the field and asked if she could borrow Lucy so the two dogs could have some playing time. She should be back soon."

"That's good. For a minute there I was worried something bad had happened to our star witness!"

The team went inside and through to the sheriff's back garden. They were amazed to see the 2 deputies busy at the barbeque and could all smell the delicious aroma of meat cooking.

Just before they got ready to eat there was a knock at the door and Tom went to answer it. He appeared a minute later with a tired looking Lucy on her lead.

"Sheila, Tammy says thanks for letting her borrow Lucy. Apparently the two dogs had a whale of a time and she hopes they can meet up again soon. She also told me to tell you that she'd be happy to take Lucy out on walks with Coal if you wanted her to so that they could play and you wouldn't have to worry about exercising her."

"Aww…how sweet my baby girl is in love with another man!"

"Umm…Mr Morgan I thought I was your baby girl?"

"You are. I meant my _second_ baby girl. I hope you don't mind if I have 2 girlfriends do you?"

"As long as I'm one of them then I'm happy if your other girlfriend is such a cute smart dog named Lucy!"

"Thank you. I knew you'd understand…."

"FOOD'S UP!"

Everyone grabbed plates and loaded them high with meat, salad and everything else. Meanwhile Kim emerged from the house with 2 bowls, one full of water and the other with filled with steak and sausages all cut up into Lucy sized pieces.

"Lucy, here's your dinner!"

Everyone watched and smiled as Lucy ran over to the bowls Kim put down and started to eagerly eat the cut up meat, clearly enjoying her special meal.

With everyone's plates filled, they all sat down at the table to eat. Tom raised a toast to the team. "To the best people outside this town I have ever known. Thank you for coming all the way out here, thank you for all your hard work and thank you for being such good guests!" Everyone raised their glasses in response. Before they started to tuck into their food, Hotch raised a toast of his own from the team. "Here's to you sheriff, your deputies, to Kim, to all your kindness and hospitality and for making our stay here in your small but wonderful town such a memorable experience. And here's to not only the other 2 victims but to Tina, without whom we would of never have met and got to know both Sheila and the great Lucy. Sheila I hope Lucy will be very happy in your care and I hope she thrives like she did when Tina was alive!" They all raised their glasses again and then all hungrily tucked into their food. It didn't take long for the hungry Morgan to clear his plate.

"Maam would you mind if I have seconds. The food is certainly delicious!"

"Help yourself. The same goes for the rest of you."

To everyone's surprise Lucy then suddenly appeared and sat down next to Kim holding the empty bowl in her mouth looking hopefully up at her with her puppy dog eyes!

"Aww…I think Lucy heard you offering everyone seconds!"

"Lucy bring it here girl and I'll put something in it for you!"

Lucy eagerly hurried over to Morgan who was putting more food on his plate with the bowl still in her mouth. She dropped it at his feet and then sat there looking hopefully up at him. Morgan broke a burger and a couple of sausages into the bowl and, after finishing putting food onto his own plate put the bowl down for Lucy who eagerly tucked into her second dinner.

"Sheila if you ever need someone to watch her whilst you go out somewhere, we don't mind if you bring her round here. She's as good as gold and we'd love to have her hang out here for even an hour or two."

"Thank you Kim and Tom. I might need to take you up on that offer sometimes."

Once everyone's stomachs were full, the whole team insisted on clearing up and washing the dishes as their way of a thank you for the barbeque.

They spent the next couple of hours sitting chatting in the garden and, of course, having to throw a ball for Lucy, who never seemed to tire.

By 9pm everyone was tired. "Sheila, I'll give you and Lucy a lift home."

"Thank you."

Everyone made sure to say goodnight and goodbye to not only Sheila but especially to the dog they'd all grown to love in less than a day but whom had been a massive help in catching her owner's killer before sheriff Tom gave them both a lift back to her home.

After arranging to be back at the sheriff's house at 9am the next morning, which would give them all a bit more sleep, Reid and Blake then went with deputy Dan back to his home and J.J and Morgan went back to deputy Max's house. Rossi and Hotch were sitting outside and Garcia was inside chatting with Kim whilst helping her make a fresh pot of coffee.

"You don't mind if I call Jack do you? I can catch him between his bath and bedtime now."

"You go right ahead but you don't mind if I say goodnight to him again do you?"

"You'd know I'd never keep him from speaking to his uncle Dave."

Dave sat there quietly as Hotch called Jessica who put Jack on the phone to speak to his dad. As usual Jack had a lot to say about how great his day at school had been and what else had happened. He was clearly overjoyed when his dad told him they'd not only caught the bad guy with their new dog friend's help but that he'd be home sometime tomorrow. Although he knew that Jack loved staying with his aunt Jess, nothing could beat the little time he got to spend with his hero dad.

Rossi sat smiling as he listened to Hotch happily chatting to his son. Eventually they were saying their goodbyes and goodnights and Hotch handed Rossi his cellphone so that Jack could say good night to his uncle Dave. Dave always loved how, even at this time of the evening, when it was about 7pm in Virginia, Jack always sounded like he had so much energy.

After the phone call had ended they headed inside where they found Garcia, Kim and Tom sitting in the warmer lounge. There were 2 cups of coffee sitting on the table.

"I was going to bring it out to you but I didn't want to interrupt your phonecall as you sounded so happy to whoever you were talking to."

"I was talking to Jack. He's so happy I'll be home in time for dinner tomorrow. I can't wait to see the little guy."

"Where is he when you are away for work?"

"When I have to travel, he goes to stay with his Aunt Jessica who's the sister of my late wife Haley. She's great with him and he loves her and loves staying with her but I know he can never wait to see me again."

"It must be hard for both of you when you have to travel so much for work. I don't know how you do it."

"It's not easy and it gets harder every time I have to leave him but I know Jessica will take really good care of him and keep him safe and I do everything I can to get back to him as soon as I can. When we are away we talk on the phone every night. My team is like a second family to him and everyone loves him and he loves them."

"Jack is a great kid. We all help out Hotch as much as we can with things like paperwork after a case so he can get to spend as much time as he can with Jack. We even all help him with other things like baby sitting or soccer coaching. Every one of us on this team loves spending any time with Jack that we get to."

"How is my little Jackster doing by the way?"

"He's doing great. He's loving school, especially science. His teacher has told me more than once that he's one of the smartest kids in her class and the only grade he seems to get is an A on everything. He also wants to try out for his school soccer team next year. He's got so many friends I've lost count and he's always getting invited for another sleepover at someone's house."

"What ever happened to that kid that was being mean to him?"

"Somehow he won that Paul over and now they are great friends. I'm not sure how he managed it but he seems to make friends so easily."

They all sat talking for a bit longer before a tired Hotch, Rossi and Garcia excused themselves and said their goodnights. All 3 went up the stairs and into their rooms. While Rossi changed into his night clothes, Hotch went into the bathroom to brush his teeth and use the bathroom. Then, after returning to the bedroom, he changed into his night clothes whilst Rossi went to use the bathroom and brush his teeth. When he returned to the room, Hotch set his alarm for 8am the next morning and both men climbed into their beds and quickly fell asleep.

At around 2am Hotch woke up really thirsty and with a pressing need for the bathroom. He got out of bed and, after stopping off to use the bathroom, went down the stairs to find a glass of water. As he stood by the kitchen sink drinking a glass of water, he heard the toilet flush and then heard someone walking down the stairs. He put his glass in the sink and turned around to see Rossi walking into the kitchen. "You thirsty too?"

"Yeah, must have been all those tasty ribs." Hotch said his goodnights to Rossi and went back upstairs to bed.

He was just falling back to sleep when he heard Rossi returning to bed.

**The next day….**

Hotch was already waking up when his alarm went off. He quickly shut it off and got out of bed. He gathered his things and went into the bathroom. Within 10 minutes, he had used the bathroom, showered, shaved and dressed. Gathering his stuff, he went back towards his room. A tired looking Garcia was just coming out of her room and heading for the bathroom when Hotch came out. Hotch returned to the bedroom where Dave was just waking up. Both men heard someone coming out of the bathroom and a sleepy Dave got out of bed, gathered his things and stumbled off to the bathroom.

Whilst Dave was using the bathroom, Hotch made both the beds and then packed up his go bag. Dave returned 10 minutes later having used the bathroom, showered, brushed his teeth and dressed to find both beds made. He packed up his own go bag and the 2 men, after checking they were leaving the room tidy and not forgetting anything, took their bags and headed downstairs. Tom was already up and dressed in his uniform and was sitting at his lounge table doing paperwork when the 2 men came downstairs. Kim was in the kitchen making the agents coffee and breakfast. As they sat down at the table with mugs of coffee and plates full of bacon, eggs and toast, Hotch made a quick call to the jet's pilot that they should be at the airport by about 10am so to be ready to fly around then.

As they were eating, the other 4 walked in, all with their go bags in their hands.

"Morning boss man! Where's my baby girl?"

"Right here Mr Morgan" Garcia replied walking into the kitchen

"Ready for the off?"

"Not before breakfast I'm not!"

They all laughed knowing Morgan and his apparently bottomless stomach.

The rest of them sat down to coffee and plates of eggs, bacon and toast. Like yesterday, Kim made up a plate with extra toast and eggs but no bacon for Garcia.

Once they had finished breakfast and cleared up the dishes at their insistence, the team all said their sad goodbyes to the sheriff and his wife, thanking them profusely for their wonderful hospitality. Kim handed them 2 big containers full of both chicken and ham sandwiches. "Here, take these for the flight home…"

"Thank you maam, again you are too kind."

Once they had finished their goodbyes, they all got into the SUV's and sadly drove off towards the airport. Although all of them, especially Hotch and J.J, wanted so much to get home, they were all sad to be leaving such a great little town with such great people.

With Hotch driving the lead vehicle and Morgan driving the one following they drove towards the airport. Somehow, instead of the quiet and relaxed J.J being in their car with them, Rossi and Hotch had the company of Reid who kept them entertained with his endless knowledge. Neither Rossi nor Hotch had the heart to tell him to shut up today so just let him keep rambling and only half listening to Reid's blabbering.

At exactly 10am, the team arrived at the jet. After parking their cars, which would be picked up later, they transferred all the stuff onto the jet, Morgan putting the 2 containers of sandwiches in the jet's fridge, and then sat down in the jet waiting for it to take off. They were all on their way home but would always miss the town of Jakub and the little border collie who had stolen their hearts…


End file.
